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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26230186">Above Deck</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DwarvenBeardSpores/pseuds/DwarvenBeardSpores'>DwarvenBeardSpores</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Rusty Quill Gaming (Podcast)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Airships, Angst, Episode 167: Fun and Games, Episode Tag, Gen, Magic, Panic Attacks, Prediction, Tension tension tension tension</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:08:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,000</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26230186</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DwarvenBeardSpores/pseuds/DwarvenBeardSpores</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>They're close enough now that Zolf can let go of the wheel to grab their hands. They're trembling. "Cel," Zolf says. His eyes ache. He keeps them open. "Cel." He runs his thumbs over their knuckles. "What happened? Everyone's asleep?"</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Cel nods, and Zolf bites his lip to keep from reacting to the way the magic is smearing their hairline. It's one thing to know it's been happening to him. It's another thing altogether to see it happening to someone else.</i>
</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Celiquillithon "Cel" Sidebottom &amp; Zolf Smith</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>60</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Above Deck</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So last week the episode aired and I said "I'm gonna write a super angsty fic with Zolf and Cel and wild magic before next episode." </p>
<p>Then I wrote a different fic about Zolf and Cel. (It has been Zolf and Cel central all week, very very delightful).</p>
<p>Now, here I am, 8 hours before the episode airs, posting this. It's not quite everything I wanted from it, but I AM posting it so I DO win. </p>
<p>Y'all I'm so worried about 168...</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Zolf has run out of tunes to whistle when the hatch from belowdecks slams open and Cel scrambles out. The noise is jarring after so many hours of only himself and the wind.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Zolf?" they gasp. "Zolf, Mr. Smith, oh I'm so glad you're awake."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"What're you doing up here?" Zolf yells. He's at the wheel. He needs to keep on course in this particular gust of wind. The ship's doing it for him but he doesn't trust like that. "You're supposed t'--"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I know," they say, stumbling closer. "I know, I know, it's just--" Something's very wrong. They're shaking and-- and they shouldn't be out in the open because they're already starting to smear in the same sort of way Zolf's been doing. It's been like six seconds.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"It's not safe out here!" he says. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"It's not safe down there either!"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zolf's heart goes cold. All this, the sailing and the quiet and the weird magic things, it's bearable, right? It's bearable because he knows he's doing something good. He's protecting the people he cares about. But if they're not protected... "What happened? I thought the room was--"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"It wasn't enough," Cel says. "It-- It-- we didn't have the materials and-- and I did the best I could but-- I said, I mean, it was a gamble but-- but it wasn't good enough and I-- Even Siggif is asleep now, Zolf, and I-- I couldn't </span>
  <em>
    <span>do </span>
  </em>
  <span>anything."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They're close enough now that Zolf can let go of the wheel to grab their hands. They're trembling. "Cel," Zolf says. His eyes ache. He keeps them open. "Cel." He runs his thumbs over their knuckles. "What </span>
  <em>
    <span>happened? </span>
  </em>
  <span>Everyone's asleep?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Cel nods, and Zolf bites his lip to keep from reacting to the way the magic is smearing their hairline. It's one thing to know it's been happening to him. It's another thing altogether to </span>
  <em>
    <span>see </span>
  </em>
  <span>it happening to someone else.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Everyone has-- Hamid and Azu and Wilde and Sassraa and Skraak and-- and Siggif was the last one up but-- but then-- but then he-- and I couldn't wake them up and I tried and I tried and-- and I kept wondering if it'd happened to you too, and if you were flying the ship at all and-- Mr. Smith your beard is </span>
  <em>
    <span>disappearing</span>
  </em>
  <span>!"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zolf steels himself and refuses to look down. "Yeah," he says. His voice creaks. "'S what it's like out here. It'll be fine."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Cel falls to their knees, which puts their hands at a better angle for him to hold but isn't, overall, a good sign. "I don't think anything's fine, Mr. Smith." </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Okay," Zolf says. "Yeah, maybe not. But we're here, and we're stuck here until this is over, so let's-- let's figure out what's happened, and see if we can do anything about it. Okay?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Cel nods.</span>
  <span>
    <br/>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Zolf glances at the mountain peaks passing on the port side. He glances at the steering wheel, which turns all on his own. He doesn't trust it. He </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>doesn't trust it, but he doesn't let go of Cel just yet.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"So they're not waking up. That it?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They stare very hard at the deck.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Cel?" </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I-- I don't know."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The wind picks up. The wild magic flickers, blurring his and Cel's hands together. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"What does that mean?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"I had to-- it wouldn't do us any </span>
  <em>
    <span>good </span>
  </em>
  <span>to be sort-of-safer if the ship was just gonna crash and I couldn't wake anybody and I had to do </span>
  <em>
    <span>something </span>
  </em>
  <span>so I-- I-- I--" Their breath starts coming in quicker, and Zolf is too slow to do anything useful about it. "I had to open the cage and I closed it again right after but I don't know what might've got in or what it might've done-- and it wasn't good enough </span>
  <em>
    <span>anyway</span>
  </em>
  <span> and--"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Gods, if Zolf thinks about that too much he's going to… feel something, but he doesn't have to think about it yet. He has a focus, and that focus is figuring out what the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck </span>
  </em>
  <span>to do with all this. Maybe Cel could use some focus too.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Okay. Listen. Would it be more of a risk to open the cage again now?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Cel gives a desperate shrug.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Right then." Zolf says. He squeezes their fingers. "You shouldn't be out here. But since you are, you can either go back inside and keep the cage closed, or stay out here with me. Since you came out in the first place, I'm gonna guess you wanna stay. Is that right?"</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Cel bites their lower lip. Their eyes flick between his face and the deck of the ship and the sky and… after what feels like ages, they nod.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"The only reason I'm not fighting you on this is because neither one's a good idea," he says. "We're out of good ideas. We've just got this. And…" he lets go of one of Cel's hands to rub his aching eyes, "I could probably use the company."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Okay," Cel says. "Okay, I can do that."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"Good," Zolf says. He lets out a breath. "Don't you fall asleep on me too." He lets Cel go with some reluctance, but he </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> relieved that their hands haven't melded together or something.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He turns to the wheel and finds that they're still on course. Mixed feelings about that. He fusses with the steering as Cel makes their way to their feet and watches him with some interest. They'll probably have insights on the whole ship-steering-itself thing, but moments before the question leaves his mouth he realizes that it might freak them out </span>
  <em>
    <span>more</span>
  </em>
  <span> to know that the ship, </span>
  <em>
    <span>their </span>
  </em>
  <span>ship, isn't really doing what it should. He can ask in a bit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>"So Cel," he says, ignoring the way their missing ear flickers into view when he looks at it too long. "Know any good shanties?" </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They don't sing, yet, but they start talking nervously about singing, and, well. Terrible implications aside, it's nice to have them there. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Helps him feel more awake.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! I'd love to hear what you thought. </p>
<p>You can also find me on tumblr as dwarven-beard-spores and twitter as @beardspores. </p>
<p>Take care all!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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